Call for unity issued at special assembly

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Six Nations of the Grand River (Ontario) Chief Roberta Jamieson upstaged the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations on the opening morning of the special chief's assembly on governance held on May 22 and 23. But their messages were similar in many ways.

Both speakers' central message was aimed at persuading the chiefs to vote in favor of a national unity resolution that would bring all First Nations together to fight the most basic aspects of the First Nations governance act. A draft version of the act will soon make its way to the prime minister and cabinet.

It's expected the legislation will receive first reading in Parliament sometime in June. Windspeaker's publication deadline fell at the end of the first day of the two-day gathering. More developments were expected on the second day and will be reported in our next edition.

Jamieson was speaking on behalf of the implementation committee formed in Winnipeg at the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs' assembly on governance in March. That gathering was called by chiefs who felt the national organization was not doing enough to oppose the minister on the governance issue.

She urged Native leaders to lobby Liberal MPs, contact church and labor leaders and other influential Canadians and "advise" the government that the governance act will receive stiff opposition of all kinds. Jamieson strongly urged the chiefs to not boycott the next round of consultations that the minister has promised will follow first reading of the governance act. She urged every organization to demand to be heard.

Matthew Coon Come, the national chief, outlined his vision for how the First Nations governance process should unfold. Jamieson followed the national chief. While there was polite applause, tinged with just a hint of enthusiasm, at the conclusion of Coon Come's remarks, the still newly-elected Six Nations chief received a standing ovation when she was done.

Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs president Stewart Phillip and Barriere Lake First Nation technician Russell Diabo jumped to their feet applauding and cheering when Jamieson ended her speech. They were followed by one-third to one half of the people in the packed convention hall. The hall was much more crowded for this assembly than it had been for the previous chief's confederacy held in the same room last December. An early estimate of the number of chiefs in attendance varied from 160 to 200, but there were also a number of proxies, technical people and observers present.

Very early in his speech, Coon Come dealt with the internal division that has hindered the First Nations side in the year-long governance battle with Indian Affairs minister Robert Nault.

"I don't believe in the politics of division," Coon Come said. "I believe in the politics of diversity and inclusion. We believe in building respectful consensus."

He reminded the chiefs that the last special assembly was called in December 1994 in Quebec City. That gathering dealt with the threat of Quebec separation. Coon Come and his James Bay people played a key role at that time in convincing the separatists that they would have a fight on their hands if they tried to leave Canada, that the Crees and the Cree lands would remain in Canada.

"The government of Canada owes us a debt of gratitude for that. We'll add that to the list," he said. "In 1994, we stood together to defend our nationhood, to protect our rights. We are here today for the same reason."

He said the Quebec government's relationship with First Nations has improved, while the federal government's relationship has worsened.

"How times have changed. Here we are in 2002 and the government of Quebec is willing to sign agreements with our peoples that recognize us as nations. But the federal minister of Indian Affairs is still stuck in the '60s- the 1860s."

He returned to the unity issue again.

"As it is, the minister is playing the politics of division to try and break our unity. Hesays people are on board, that many organizations are on-side. I fear that some of our people feel that there is a split in our unity," he said. "People, we are all united in a common cause. Whether you participated in the consultations or boycotted the process, we made our decisions for the same reason: we were all trying to advance our interests and protect our rights. That's not division, that's democracy."

The national chief told the audience the details of his First Nations' plan that is based on the report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. He also said the governance act will not meet the standards-set down in the Sparrow case by the Supreme Court of Canada-that are required if the government wants to alter Aboriginal and treaty rights.

Jamieson, the first Aboriginal woman to be called to the bar in Canada and a former Ontario ombudsman, told the gathering that her remarks would not be a speech, but "a call to action." But Jamieson hit the same points as have been continually hit by the national chief in the last year as she began her remarks.

"I want to talk to those of you who are ready for action and I want to convince those of you who aren't ready to get ready," she said. "National Chief Coon Come has set out a plan for change. There can be no argument that we need to do a lot of nation building and re-building. There can be no argument that we must insist that our treaty partners comply with their promises. The honor of the Crown requires nothing less. There can be no argument that we require a re-distribution of lands and resources to restore our lands and resources to health. And there can be no argument that this means new fiscal arrangements must be put in place. So I believe we can be united around the national chief's plan."

But she said unity was not enough.

"We must also take vigorous, principled and clear action. We can leave no doubt about our intentions. We're in a situation that won't wait until the powwow season's over or ntil we have the free time and the funds. If you're standing on the deck of the Titanic saying you're not going under because you have a treaty or are at a negotiating table or that your rights are protected by the Constitution, you better be prepared for a pretty cold bath," she said. "If we are not prepared to take action to protect our treaties and our rights, we're going to find ourselves immersed in a new reality from which we may never escape."

While she said she believes the legislative package proposed by the minister is "only the tip of the iceberg" of what she sees as the government's hidden agenda of unburdening itself of its fiduciary obligation to First Nations people, Jamieson said First Nations have a bit of work to do themselves. She graded the federal government on its report card and said the government was failing in many aspects of its relationship with First Nations, then added that doesn't mean First Nation leaders shouldn't be making changes in the way they conduct their own business.

"I don't think we need any lessons of accountability for a teacher whose own report card is so full of failure," she said, later adding, "There is a need for us to improve accountability in our communities."

She urged the chiefs to commit to looking at accountability issues during the next 12 months.

"Let's start by acknowledging that there is a need for us to improve accountability. Of course there's a need. What else would you expect after a century of an Indian Act that held chiefs and councils accountable only to an Indian agent?" she asked. "The last thing government wanted then was for our chiefs and councilors to be accountable to our own people. We also know that we have accountability problems caused by chronic under-funding. But why wait for the threat of a governance act to force us to do things we can and should be doing for ourselves?"

She said First Nations could create their own human rights commissions.

"We, just as much as government, must beak with an unhealthy past. We don't need government's permission to do that," she said.

Jamieson also called for the appointment of a minister of state for First Nations and a Parliamentary commissioner for First Nations issues. She argued that the department of Indian Affairs needed reforms just as much as First Nations and the Indian Act needed reforms and said the department should not be trusted to reform itself.